Goldcorp

Career Celebration programme seen as one of the first successful global people initiatives

Following a series of mergers and acquisitions, Goldcorp has grown from a mid-sized gold company to one of the world’s largest gold producers. Listed by the Globe and Mail as one of Canada’s ‘Top 100 Employers’ and The Financial Post as one of the ‘Ten Best Companies to Work For,’ the organisation actively recognises professional excellence and experience.

With a focused commitment to increase gold production by another 50 percent, there’s an ongoing need to align different locations and operations to this overall corporate vision of growth.

The challenge: bring together different mines and locations across the Americas. Engage and align employees globally by celebrating their contributions to the organisation. Launch a flexible solution that could be tailored towards the unique needs of individual locations—but would still support a unified message.

JOURNEY TO RECOGNITION

Recognition at many of Goldcorp’s North American mines has existed throughout the years, but inconsistently. Once these locations were brought into the Goldcorp family, leadership wanted to call out the commitment and loyalty of long time workers—sometimes three generations of families. This was in contrast to the newer locations found in Mexico, Central, and South America. Here, recognition was seen as a new concept. A global solution was needed to bring recognition into the work place and create a positive work culture.

PARTNERING WITH O.C. TANNER

To design and implement a global solution, Goldcorp partnered with O.C. Tanner. Known as the leader in global recognition, O.C. Tanner launched a solution that celebrated the career achievements of Goldcorp employees in English, French, and Spanish.

In 2 years, more than 2,862 Career Celebrations have been presented. Now, managers present awards to celebrate team members’ 5, 10, 15 years of service and beyond. For team members in Mexico, these service awards are presented at an annual holiday celebration.

At launch, tip sheets helped train managers on creating meaningful presentations. Posters, emails, intranet communications and a Town Hall featuring Goldcorp’s CEO, drove awareness on the importance of celebrating careers across the organisation.

Two years in, programme success is driving Goldcorp to adopt O.C. Tanner’s latest innovation, Yearbook. Designed as a personal keepsake, Yearbook will further tailor the experience with year-specific messaging and personal notes from leaders. The goal: messaging unique to the individual, aligned to Goldcorp’s brand.

RESULTS DELIVERED FOR GOLDCORP

The programme has been well received and is being used as a tool to tackle communication challenges. Pulse surveys reveal pride in working for Goldcorp, a love of the symbolic pin and award and appreciation for the opportunity the programme provides to connect with leaders.

As the company is growing so quickly, this is seen as an invaluable tool to bring different populations together and unify them under Goldcorp’s brand.

Seen as one of the first successful global people initiatives, it has paved the way for future strategies.

“A great partner is essential for a global programme. It is so much easier when you can count on flexibility, expertise and swift follow-through.” — Jenine Ellefson, Director of Recruitment and Talent Management

KEY LESSONS

Meeting the needs of different cultures and locations requires flexibility and a commitment to logistics.

Spending time on translation ensures the experience is meaningful.

Communicating best practices creates buy-in and is an essential element of a smooth launch.

Getting leadership buy-in and support from the beginning is key to success.

Leveraging lessons learned here will help out with other global initiatives.